ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. track — a path
  3. degree — an amount
  4. degree — from a university
  5. hand — help
  6. root — of a word
  7. chip — for betting
  8. root — the cause
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. chip — to eat
  11. wound — an injury
  12. chest — of your body
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. track — a song
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. wound — an injury
  17. degree — temperature
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. track — to keep track
  20. chest — a box
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chest — of your body
  24. root — of a plant

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com